This comedy about a mean boss bribing her harried assistant into marrying her for a green card wasn't on Jack's or my must-see list but I decided to watch it after it got a few nominations. There are some laughs and pretty location shots (with various Massachusetts locales standing in for Alaska), but this is definitely not art.
Sandra Bullock, just named (by theatre owners) the top Hollywood box office star for 2009, has two other releases this year (I mean LAST year) though I've seen neither (The Blind Side has garnered her further nominations). I liked Bullock in her breakout performance in Speed (1994); in the comedies While You Were Sleeping (1995), Hope Floats (1998), Practical Magic (1998 - and I also loved the Alice Hoffman novel), and Miss Congeniality (2000); and dramas 28 Days (2000), Crash (2004), and Infamous (2006); among others. Ryan Reynolds (Amy knows him best for Just Friends (2005); I liked him in Waiting... (2005); Definitely, Maybe (2008) which was a guilty pleasure; and the ensemble of Adventureland) definitely had the harried part down, but maybe it was a little one-dimensional.
The classic odd-couple story morphs into a fish-out-of-water story when Bullock's spike-heeled/pencil-skirted character travels to an island in the 49th state. Supporting cast, including Betty White (Golden Girls (1985-92), The Practice and Boston Legal (2004-8), much more), Mary Steenburgen (some of my faves: Melvin and Howard (1980) which won her an Oscar, A Midsummer Night's Sex Comedy (1982), Parenthood (1989), Back to the Future III (1990), What's Eating Gilbert Grape (1993), Casa de los babys (2003), and Curb Your Enthusiasm (2000-9)), Aasif Mandvi (Spider-Man 2 (2004)), and, most notably The Office's Oscar Nuñez, playing a flamboyant party boy, do the best they can with the tools they've got. Director Anne Fletcher moved up from dancing (Flintstones and The Mask in 1994, more) to choreographing (The Wedding Planner (2001), Down with Love (2003), Six Feet Under (2001-5), The 40 Year-Old Virgin (2005), more) to directing the dance movie Step Up (2006), then 27 Dresses (2008), and now this. Pete Chiarelli has no prior writing credits.
I watched this DVD during two sessions on my indoor bike. After the first session I was encouraged, but after the second, not so much. It has its moments, but doesn't sustain for 108 minutes. It's not a complete waste of time, but recommended mostly for die-hard Bullock and/or Reynolds fans.
I totally disagree with you about Sandra Bullock. It took me several subsequent features after Speed to get over her horrid performance. I found her totally unbelievable. She responded to a lifethreatening experience by calmly making eyes at Keanu? Ick! I have since warmed up to her, but I can't give her credit for Speed.
ReplyDeleteRyan Reynolds, on the other hand, has done some interesting stuff. Babette, if you haven't seen The Nines, then I recommend checking it out. IT is a low-budget film with a small cast all playing different sets of characters in mystically overlapping stories.